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USE MY DOCUMENT CAMERA


This wiki is a list of various classroom uses of document camera.

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GENERAL
  • Document cameras are great for sharing -- have students or groups of students present their student work.

READING
  • Shared Reading-Every book is a big book when you have a document camera! I use the document camera daily for shared reading with 4th and 5th graders. This means that my students can all see the text that I'm reading aloud. They are expected to read along mentally. Every couple of sentences, I drop a word as I'm reading and expect the students to all chorally fill in that word. The students and I are able to intelligently discuss text features, comprehension strategies, spelling rules, and new vocabulary when all students are able to see the text. Every page or so, I stop reading aloud and tell the students to read a certain section mentally. I then hold students accountable for their reading through journal responses, pair share, and whole class discussion. These methods also improve reading fluency as students are encouraged to decode more rapidly than they normally do in order to keep up with the teacher's reading pace. Another bonus is that all students can quickly and easily see the pictures during a read aloud.

WRITING
  • Essay Writing-Students write for homework. The following day, the teacher randomly selects 3 students' papers. These 3 papers are placed under the document camera one at a time for grading. The teacher does a "think-aloud" grading of each paper, and, when the students are ready, calls on them for input. The assignments are given a letter grade on the spot. These three students receive a grade and all others receive credit/no credit. If a student is called upon to have her paper graded when she is absent, another student may volunteer to have his paper graded. If a student is called upon for grading and he does not have the assignment, he receives an F on that assignment. This procedure sends a clear message to the students, "Your writing may be published at any time, so you better do your best work just in case. The quality of work increases greatly, and the students benefit so much more from the teacher's hard work grading papers. The teacher is able to do impromptu mini-lessons based on student weaknesses rather than some arbitrary selection method. Also, this cuts down tremendously on teacher workload. The teacher no longer must edit and grade every student's homework. The quality of work increases in spite of the fact that each paper may simply be "stamped" as complete.
  • Modeling Writing-Good writing teachers model writing for the students on a regular basis. A document camera makes that modeling very genuine because no longer is the teacher writing on a transparency or a giant piece of paper. She is writing on a paper just like the students will be writing on! She is then able to model correct paper organization, handwriting, etc.
  • Whiteboard Lines-Project a blank piece of lined paper onto your white board. Now you and your students can write directly on the whiteboard and keep the writing straight and neat.

MATH
  • Manipulatives can be placed under the camera for all to see clearly. Consider how easily you can teach using a ruler and protractor as well as base 10 blocks, clock, etc.
  • Calculators-show steps for entering things into graphing calculator. Students like to see which keys are being pressed.

SCIENCE
  • Science Demo-When the teacher does a science experiment, point the document camera at the materials for all to see. For example, let's say your experiment measures liquid in a measuring cup. Tilt the camera so that it points at the side of the cup. Now all of your students can easily read the measurement and more clearly understand how to determine an accurate measurement.
  • For experiments that are too dangerous or need to be done under a hood.

SOCIAL STUDIES
  • Maps-You will no longer need the pull down maps for geography and history discussions. Simply slap a book map under your document camera and away you go! This is especially useful with older atlases since they can be difficult to scan.

DRAMA
  • Drama Stage-Set Students can draw the background scenery for a play or skit they will perform in class. Move your projector at a 45 degree angle to the white board. Project the drawing onto the white board, angling it behind the actors. The image will naturally distort, but the overall effectiveness is well worth it.

MUSIC
  • Use it to show how the individual parts in a score fit together
  • Teach how to use a metronome or a tuner

CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT
  • Worksheets, Forms, Text Book-Rather than wasting precious class time running around making sure all the students know where you are in the book, on the worksheet, etc. you can simply point if you use a document camera. Having the students fill in forms is now a snap as well.
  • Giant Timer-Use the document camera to project a countdown timer. Sure you can buy an overhead timer for about $40. But when you have a document camera, the old kitchen timer works just fine. Use it to keep the kids focused on the task, knowing that the clock is ticking, and they will soon be out of time for that assignment.